Premier League preview: Tottenham Hotspur beat Manchester City, how to lock Reindes and crack Guardiola’s new tactics?

The second round of the Premier League will usher in a focus battle - Tottenham Hotspur challenges Manchester City away. After the first round, Tottenham coach Thomas Frank and his disciples will face huge challenges, especially at a time when the "Blue Moon" is in a hot state and morale is in full swing.

Guardiola Manchester City is in the limelight, and Reindez has become the new engine

Although Tottenham has handed over the wing core Eberrech Eze to Arsenal, there is no time to feel sad at this moment. Frank's most pressing task is to rack his brains and develop tactics to contain Manchester City, especially to find ways to limit new aid Tijani Reindez. This midfield star who made a stunning debut in the first round of the Premier League has become a key figure in Manchester City's offensive system.

The 26-year-old midfielder joined Manchester City from AC Milan for £46 million and is seen as the perfect successor to fill the creativity gap left by De Bruyne. In the game against Wolves, Reindes not only contributed goals, but also provided assists, perfectly integrating into the team, and has become the "heart" of Manchester City's offensive and defensive transformation.

Tottenham Coping Strategy: Can the five defenders "lock down" Reindez?

Will Tottenham "set up a bus" to limit Reindes and even the entire Manchester City? The answer is not simply "staying hard". Tottenham will still insist on attacking, but will it be a five-guard formation like the previous European Super Cup against Paris Saint-Germain? The answer is likely to be yes.

Frank always favors the five-guard system when facing top teams. This not only means an additional defender, but more importantly, it can allow a central defender to move forward boldly to the midfield and directly put pressure on creative midfielders like Reindez.

As will be analyzed in detail later, Manchester City is accustomed to suppressing their opponents in half. Tottenham's response strategy will be to shrink the middle lane space and limit the activity areas that Reindes is best at. Van Devin is expected to take on this heavy responsibility at certain times, moving the defense forward with the entire team, compressing Manchester City's space to play in the midfield.

However, Tottenham must maintain the highest level of concentration, because Reindez is a player with a balanced foot and a threat in a flash. The Wolves' mistake in the first round defense was to grab it too early, but Reindes easily got rid of it, and then assisted Haaland to score. Even if Reindez is stared to death, his teammates around him can crack the oppression through flexible running.

Manchester City's new tactics: Guardiola's "sixth man running"?

Tottenham faces far more than one Reindez. In fact, Guardiola has been experimenting with new tactics all summer, and we have seen some "drafts" in the Club World Cup. In the 4-0 victory over Wolves, Manchester City showed stronger explosiveness and tactical diversity. They can now even change their lineup to a "2-3-5" system when attacking, as follows:

From defense to offensive stage: The winger usually retracts and approaches Haaland, while the two full-backs press forward significantly to widen the attack width.

When in-depth attack: the winger quickly pulled to the wing, while the full-back recruited inward and formed a three-mile midfield with Nico Gonzalez.

This allows Reindez and Bernardo Silva to freely advance and join the front group of five attackers. While the world is still discussing the "third-man running position", Manchester City may be leading the new trend of "sixth-man running position".

Tottenham will use intensive defense to deal with Manchester City's five-man offensive group, but at this time, the recruiting full-back may suddenly step forward and break Tottenham's defense line. This tactic has been practiced many times by Rico Lewis, Mattus Nunes and Rayan Ait Nuri in the Club World Cup.

Reindes leads Manchester City's new style of play, playing cards unconventionally?

Although this tactic is risky, if Tottenham plays five defenders, Manchester City's counterattack threat will be reduced, so that more troops can be invested in the offensive with greater confidence. In addition, there is another significant change: when Manchester City turned from defense to offense, the winger's position was different from last season.

Last season, the wingers usually stayed close to the sidelines. But in the Club World Cup, we see that the midfielder No. 8 players will retreat deeper, while the winger will retract closer to Haaland. This forms a kind of "bait", luring the opponent's defender to press and squeeze, thus exposing the gap behind him. At this time, Manchester City can quickly hand the ball to Haaland and launch a quick and direct counterattack. This may sound contrary to the "traditional Manchester City" style, but it is this unconventional that reflects the beauty of football and also shows the evolving nature of Manchester City.

Obviously, a huge test is waiting for Tottenham, and the 90-minute journey to Etihad is destined to be full of challenges.